Another year, another loss in the first round for the Los Angeles Lakers, and yet nothing has really been done to help the franchise. Ever since Shaquille O’Neal was traded, the Lakers are basically a .500 team with no playoff series wins, and wasting one of the best talents in Kobe Bryant that some have ever seen.

During the off-season, I am sure we will hear about the Lakers trying to land a huge player like Kevin Garnett. While that will bring the spotlight back to Los Angeles, someone like Garnett will not make the Lakers a whole lot better.

First off, in order to get Garnett and his huge salary, the Lakers would basically have to trade away all of their decent players and be forced not to resign any of the players that they should.

For example, the Lakers would have to trade away Lamar Odom for sure, which probably is not a bad thing since he is one of the most inconsistent players in the league.

But they would also have to trade away a player like Jordan Farmar, who is a young player Los Angeles should keep and Andrew Bynum, who some in the organization and some other fans feel the Lakers should hold on to.

If the Lakers were to trade away for Garnett, that would also mean they would not be able to resign Luke Walton, who is a free agent at the end of the year.

Walton is one of those players who need to play alongside a great player like Bryant. He is a player who is unselfish, loves to pass and does all the little things that are required to have a good team.

But if the Lakers would trade for Garnett, Walton would almost certainly be on another team since owner Jerry Buss has made it clear that he does not want to go over the salary cap.

Plus, having Garnett would not promise anything to the Lakers. Would they be talked about more and gain more exposure?

Yes they would. Would they win more games. Probably. But would it lead Los Angeles back to the Promised Land? Absolutely not.

As we all know that no matter how many great players are on a team, it takes good role players to win a championship, and if Garnett were to play at Staples, the price would be too high for any quality role players to play for the purple and gold.

I love to hear the argument that good players would be willing to take the minimum in order to have a chance to play with Bryant. I think that is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard.

First off, all of us know that Bryant is not that good of a teammate. He may be getting better but team chemistry is not always on the top of his mind.

Yes the Lakers are one of the most special organizations in sports history, but we are talking about the here and now and right now, the Lakers are nothing special.

They have a mediocre general manager, a coach who is not going to coach much longer, an owner who is making the transition from himself to his son and overpriced players and tickets.

Plus, you are trying to tell me that professional athletes in this day and age are willing to take a pay cut in their prime? Now if you are sincere about that, then there are no helping fans like you.

There are a lot of better opportunities for players in the NBA right now than the Lakers. And if the Lakers do not do something to improve the situation of their organization, this city may soon become a college basketball town and a college football town really fast.